| Purpose. To understand the experiences of post stroke clients and health care professionals in Iran with outpatient rehabilitation services, and the availability and effectiveness of these services. Methods. Mixed methods were used at five outpatient rehabilitation centres. Results. From the qualitative data, five themes emerged: family income, availability of rehabilitation centres, insufficient health coverage, family situation, and lack of an interdisciplinary approach. The quantitative data provided information about the demographic, clinical characteristics of the clients as well as availability of services at inpatient and outpatient settings and the effectiveness of those services from the clients' experiences. The majority (73%) of clients needed assistance at home. Conclusion. The majority of the clients felt they had not received sufficient rehabilitation services to meet their needs. Poverty and family burden were major issues; the female family members were the main caregivers. Major rehabilitation disciplines were not available consistently in inpatient and outpatient settings. |
